X-Men: The Prom
by thew40
Summary: What happens when Professor X lets the original team go to a local Prom? Who will Jean go out with - Warren or Scott? Who will be Bobby and Hank's dates? All this, and -- THE TOAD?!


X-MEN: THE PROM  
  
By thew40  
  
  
  
THE PROM - A story of love, romance and all out fun and games as the original X-men head to their very first Prom. Will Scott ask Jean to the big dance or will he lose her to Warren? Will Hank and Bobby get dates or will they both be forced to stag?  
  
NOTE: This story takes place between X-men # 31 and 32 of the original series. It is written purely for fun and I am gaining no profit from it. The inspiration for the story came from a line in Uncanny X-men # 306 where Jean Grey says to Archangel "The night of the school prom, Scott was busy learning how to take Cerebore apart and put it back together." And yes, Toad is the villian of the story. And yes, I'm using the movie version of him. But wasn't that when he was only truly cool? I'm dedicating this story to a lot of people. First to Tricia and Kyle, who aren't really X- men fans, but would love this story. Second, to my favorite X-men fans Jon and Amy, who are going to love this story. And last - but not least - to my Dad, who has always encouraged my writing and I think would personally enjoy this nice little flashback to his youth.  
  
DISCLAIMER: I own not the X-Men. I only write about them every now and then.  
  
  
  
The visor slid up ever-so-slightly and a crimson beam flew from his eyes, shotting forward and ultimately destroying the robot before him. Scott Summers, the X-man known as Cyclops, stood victorious. He grinned smugly, spun around and fired a second blast, decimating a robot behind him.  
  
"Hey, you wanna leave some for us?" a voice shouted. He recognized it. Bobby Drake. The Iceman.  
  
Iceman was about ten feet away, already tossing large snowballs at his enemies, frezeeing their circuits immediately. He grinned wildly at his win. "Ha! I still got it!" he exclaimed. Suddenly, without warning, three large metal balls came sailing towards him. "Whoa!"  
  
"Fear not, my frozen compadre! Your ever-loving best bud the Beast is by your side to rescue you!"  
  
Beast swung down, yanking Iceman from the ground and into air, the three balls smashing into the frozen robots.  
  
"My thanks, Beast."  
  
Beast smiled. "No problem, Iceman. Now, if I can - WHOA!"  
  
Just then, the cable that Beast was sailing on snapped off and the two went tumbling towards the ground.  
  
"Go limp, Beast!" Angel shouted, grabbing hold of his teammate.  
  
"Thank you, my airborne compratriot. But what about the icicle?"  
  
"I can take care of myself, guys!" Iceman said, piling snow and ice onto the floor to coshun his fall. He fell with a wham, right on top of his large pile of snow and ice.  
  
"Iceman! Watch your back!" Cyclops ordered. But Iceman didn't get a chance to respond. A large robot was coming towards the frozen teen from behind. Cyclops sighed heavily, opened his visor and shot out a blast which shattered the robot.  
  
"Maybe you should watch your own back," a familar female voice said from behind. Jean. Marvel Girl. He spun around to see an even bigger robot heading straight for him, with Marvel Girl yanking the monstrosities missiles out of Cyclops way.  
  
"I've got it, Marvel Girl," Cyclops said. He fired quick pulses of energy at the robot centurion, smashing it into nothing. Then, he saw another robot coming towards Marvel Girl from behind. "Marvel Girl! Duck!"  
  
She did and he fired an optic blast at it, destroying the oversized robot. Cyclops glanced around the room, as did Angel, Beast, Iceman and Marvel Girl. Were they done already?  
  
"Whew! What a work out!" Iceman exclaimed, about ready to go back to his normal form.  
  
"I don't think it's quite over yet, Bobby," Beast answered.  
  
"Hank's right. Something's not quite right," Angel followed up.  
  
"I hear something," Marvel Girl said.  
  
"So do I. X-men! Get ready!"  
  
Suddenly, the floor titled down at a 60 degree angle. The X-men almost toppled over. "Hang tight!"  
  
"Not much of a choice!"  
  
Without warning, then, hundreds of small metal orbs poured out of the cieling and landed onto the floor, sliding towards them. As soon as they came into contact with each other, the orbs melted into liquid metal.  
  
"Hold them back! Hold them back!" Cyclops ordered. "Iceman! Ice shield! Now!"  
  
"Gotcha, Cyke!"  
  
Iceman worked as fast as he could, creating a massive, roomlength shield of ice protecting the five X-men. But it would not last. The liquid metal was somehow melting through the ice.  
  
"Okay. We don't have much time. Beast, Angel, see if there's anyway we can get out of this!"  
  
Angel grabbed hold of Beast and the two took off into the air . . . only to be hit by a concussion blast and sent to the floor.  
  
"Shot!" Cyclops cursed. "Iceman! Marvel Girl! Reinforce the shield! Beast! Angel! You two okay?"  
  
"Oh . . . okay. Just give me few seconds, Cyke," Angel reported, staggering to his feet.  
  
"I'm alright, too, fearless leader," Beast said, getting up.  
  
Cyclops nodded. "Good. We don't have time for injuries. I have an idea. We need to equalize the room. Standing at a 60 degree angle is not helping. Iceman, I want ice on every wall of this room, pronto. Marvel Girl, continue to reinforce the shield."  
  
"Got it," Marvel Girl answered.  
  
As she pushed against the ice shield with her telekeniesis, Iceman quickly iced up the walls, blocking the concussion beams.  
  
"Okay, now, Angel, pick me up and hover me over the other side of the room."  
  
Angel grabbed hold of Cyclops and lifted him above the upper part of the slanted floor. Cyclops fired his optic beam down, slicing right into the liquid metal. The force of the beam was helping. But it was not enough.  
  
"Iceman! I need a block of ice about twenty feet by twenty feet!" Cyclops shouted over the rush of optic blast and the liquid metal.  
  
A few seconds later, Iceman shouted back. "Got it! All set for you, leader-man!"  
  
"Good! Marvel Girl, heave it over here!" Marvel Girl concentrated as hard as she could and lifted the large block of ice to the far wall. "Now drop it!"  
  
She let go and the ice block fell straight to the ground, creating such a sudden shift in weight, the floor returned to normal.  
  
"Okay, now what? The ice shield is still going down!" Beast cried out.  
  
"Give me a second."  
  
Cyclops sliced up to the block of ice and used his beam to push the pieces to the shield, creating - in essence - a walkway to Angel, Cyclops and half the block of ice. Marvel Girl, Beast and Iceman jumped to each piece and landed on the remaining large block, where Cyclops and Angel sat waiting for them.  
  
Then it was over.  
  
The liquid metal drained out of the room, freeing the floor. The remaining robot pieces began to be swept out by clean-up robots. Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Angel, Iceman and Beast dropped onto the floor.  
  
"Excellent job, my X-men," a voice said from above. It was the voice of the valued mentor and leader, Professor Charles Xavier. "You have done very well. Your evaluations will be avaliable tomorrow night. Now, would you please meet me in the Command Center."  
  
Soon, in the room that to this generation of X-men is known as the Commander Center, but will someday be called the "War Room," the five X-men awaited their Professor's words.  
  
"Well done, X-men. Now, I have some news for you . . ."  
  
"Is it Magneto, Professor?" asked Cyclops.  
  
"No, Scott."  
  
"The Sentinals, again?" Beast inquired.  
  
"Not this time, Hank."  
  
"Mesmero?"  
  
"No, Angel, not Mesmero."  
  
"It must be the Juggernaught," Marvel Girl asked.  
  
"No, Jean, it's not Juggernaught."  
  
"Oh! Oh! I know! I know!" Iceman shouted, jumping up and down, throwing his hand up. "It's Mimic! It's Mimic! It's gotta be! I hate that guy!"  
  
The Professor sighed. "No, it's not Mimic."  
  
"Good. Because I can't stand him. He drives me crazy. I hate him."  
  
"I know that. We all know that," the Professor replied. "What I have to tell you is good news. As you know, Prom season is approaching. And with all of you growing up so quickly, I thought it best if you were to partake in this tradition. Therefore, I have been in contact with Principal Walters of Salem Center High School and he has agreed to let you five attend their Prom."  
  
"Yes!" Iceman shouted.  
  
"Wooohooo!" Beast threw in.  
  
"Alright!" Angel yelled, lifting off the ground.  
  
"This is great!" Marvel Girl exclaimed, clapping her hands together. Cyclops watched her as she did this. He loved it when she did that.  
  
"Yeah, it's great," he said, a small smile on his lips.  
  
The Professor found himself grinning at his students. "Excellent. Well, you all have been working very hard this morning and since I am so impressed with your work, I will allow you the rest of the day off. The Prom is in two weeks, so you might want to begin to prepare."  
  
***  
  
"Oh, Hank, this is going to rock!" Bobby said as he and Hank made their way down the metal coridoor to the elevator.  
  
"Yes, Bobby, it will be an extremely excellent and enlightening evening."  
  
"Yeah! It's gonna rock!"  
  
Hank just shook his head and the two entered the elevator. "So, my dear Robert, what about dates?"  
  
The smile disappeared from Bobby's face. "Whoops. Forgot about that part."  
  
"Well, we need dates."  
  
"Okay, okay," Bobby said, scratching his head. "I'm trying to think."  
  
"Don't hurt yourself, Bobby."  
  
Bobby just gave him a look.  
  
***  
  
"You did an excellent job today, Scott. I'm very proud of you," the Professor said.  
  
"Thank you, sir," Scott responded, his headcap and visor lowered from his head and his ruby quartz glasses on.  
  
"You are good leader and I know now for sure that you were an excellent choice for my taking my place so many months ago."  
  
Scott nodded. "Thank you, Professor."  
  
The Professor cocked his head. "Yet I sense that something is troubling you What's wrong, Scott?"  
  
Scott took in a breath. "It's . . . nothing sir. May I be excused?"  
  
"Of course, Scott."  
  
Just as Scott opened the door of the Professor's study to exit, Warren appeared in the doorframe. "Professor?"  
  
"Yes Warren?"  
  
"Is it alright if we head into town? We were hoping to go to Coffee- A-Go-Go and I think Jean wanted to start looking for dresses."  
  
Scott tensed at those words. Why would she have told Warren something like that? And why did he say that when Scott was around? Didn't he know that Scott loved her?  
  
"Of course, Warren. I trust all of you will be going."  
  
"I don't know. Scott? You wanna come?"  
  
He shrugged. "Why not?"  
  
Warren turned to the Professor. "Yep."  
  
"You may go. Have a good time."  
  
***  
  
The coffee house was almost full and it flowed with the sounds of The Vicksburg's "Drive Faster." Hank and Bobby were sitting across from each other at a table near one of the windows, obviously up to something. Warren, Scott and Jean were all sitting at a couch and chair.  
  
"So, you have any idea how much you're looking to spend on a Prom dress?" asked Warren.  
  
"Nope. My parents will most likely forward me some money. They've always wanted me to go to Prom. They were worried I wouldn't get the chance since I was attending a private school," Jean answered, sipping her tea.  
  
"Well, I could always give you some money to help pay for it," Warren said, lifting her hand into his own. Scott unconsciously scuffed to himself.  
  
She carefully pulled it away. "No thanks Warren. But I did pick-up this magazine from that newstand down the block. It's got all sorts of really nice dresses in it."  
  
"Here, let me take a look," Warren said, moving beside her, holding one side of the magazine.  
  
Scott caught a look at the cover. It was of a young woman about Jean's age in a Prom dress. Scott could easily picture her in that dress. It was so beautiful and lavish. With a coursage on around her wrist and her red hair up, with just a few lose strands to tantilze him. With those beautiful, sea green eyes and that gorgous smile. Just the thought of dancing with her during a slow dance. Or holding her hand as they walked out of the Prom together, side-by-side. Then, exchanging light glances, and leaning together, their lips barely brushing before they -  
  
"Scott?"  
  
Scott was suddenly thrown back into reality. "Um, sorry, Jean. What is it?"  
  
"I just asked what you thought of this dress?" she asked, pointing to a dress in the magazine. He took a good look at it.  
  
"It's very pretty," he said, barely showing any emotion as the words escaped his mouth.  
  
"Yes," Warren added. "And it would look prettier on you."  
  
Jean smiled and blushed. "Thank you, Warren, that's so sweet."  
  
Scott just scuffed again.  
  
***  
  
"Okay, okay, so that's another one off the list," Bobby said, crossing out a name on his list of potential dates. Keyword: potential.  
  
"Is this the best way to go about doing this?" asked Hank.  
  
"I don't know! Maybe, maybe not! But it's an idea. Anyway, what about this next girl? What's her name?"  
  
"It's written right there, Bobby."  
  
"I know, but I can't read your handwriting," Bobby retorted.  
  
"Her name is Terra."  
  
"Oh. Her. And how do we know her?"  
  
"She was a waitress at that Japanesse restruant. Remember? The one that you claimed to be flirting with?"  
  
"Ooooooooooh yeeeeeeaaaaah. I remember her now. So, is she any good?"  
  
"Bobby!"  
  
Bobby looked confused, then realized the error his choice of words. "Oh! Oh! Not like that! You know what I mean! I ment as a date for the Prom?"  
  
"Taken."  
  
Bobby looked shocked now. "Wha-wha-what? But-but-but . . . by who?"  
  
"Someone by the name of Tyler. Moving on."  
  
"So, how about this Nicci girl?"  
  
"Taken too."  
  
"Grrrr. What about Jillian?"  
  
"Nope. Taken."  
  
"Dina?"  
  
"Uh-uh. She's taken."  
  
"Sarah?"  
  
"Yep. Guy named Shawn, if I am correct."  
  
"Stephanie?"  
  
"Sorry."  
  
Bobby growled in frustration and looked out the window. A girl was passing by. "Well . . . what about her?"  
  
"Bobby, we don't even know her."  
  
"I know, but she's got a nice body."  
  
"That's very sexest."  
  
"I know, but it's just an observation, Hank. I mean, look at that butt!"  
  
"BOBBY!"  
  
"Well, it's a nice butt!"  
  
***  
  
It was later. Around 11:00 lights-out. Scott could swear he could hear his own little squad of cheerleaders in his head shouting: "Do it! Do it! Go Scott! Go Scott! Ask her to Prom! Ask her to Prom! Give me a 'S', give me a 'C', give me an 'O', give me a 'T', give me another 'T'. What's that spell? SCOTT! Go Scott! Go Scott!"  
  
Scott turned the corner, seeing Jean standing the hallway that led to the Girl's Dorms. She was smelling a set of flowers that the Professor had just set out. He grinned at the sight her as she gently soaked in the fragrant aroma of the flowers. He nearly toppled over.  
  
It must have caught her attention, because she looked straight over at him.  
  
"Hi Scott."  
  
Scott walked forward. Going in for the kill. "Hello Jean."  
  
Akward pause.  
  
"You, uh, did a good job this morning," Jean said.  
  
"Oh, uh, um, thanks, Jean. It wasn't nothing."  
  
Jean gave him a wierd look. That was an interesting response. Where is this going? What are you doing, Summers?  
  
"Heh, heh," she giggled.  
  
Giggling?  
  
Where the hell did that come from?  
  
He wasn't expecting that. Uh-oh. Abort! Abort!  
  
"Jean, there was something, I, um, uh, was wondering, I . . ."  
  
Abort mission! Abort mission!  
  
"Yes, Scott?"  
  
ABORT!  
  
"I . . . I . . . I, uh, nevermind."  
  
Akward pause.  
  
"Oh, uh, okay, Scott. Goodnight."  
  
"Goodnight, Jean."  
  
Jean grinned a little bit and walked off. He watched as she walked off. He smugly smiled and went to lean on the table . . . when he found there was no table there and he fell to the floor.  
  
"Scott!" He looked over to see Hank bounding up the stairs. "Are you okay? You missed the table by at least a foot."  
  
"Huh. Oh. Uh, I'm okay."  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
Scott looked over at the hall leading to the Girl's Dorms. "Yeah . . . I'm alright."  
  
***  
  
Jean walked into her dorm with a somewhat concerned look on her face. What was that all about? Was Scott trying to ask her to Prom? Could he have the same feelings she had for him? Could it possibly be true? Could such an amazing thing be happening to her? Could they go and kiss and fall in love and live happily ever after?  
  
Sigh.  
  
That would be nice.  
  
A beautiful wedding with all of her closets friends.  
  
But she knew better than that.  
  
There was no way Scott could have feelings for her.  
  
Uh-uh. No way.  
  
Impossible.  
  
Right?  
  
She shook her head and sat down in front of her mirror and looked at herself. She telekentically picked up her comb and grabbed it with her hand and brushed her hair. She then went about removing the remains of her make-up, got changed and went to bed.  
  
Did she sleep?  
  
Nope.  
  
She thought of Scott.  
  
Then, as she finally did drift to sleep, he remained in her thoughts . . .  
  
***  
  
It was two days after the news and Scott's attempt to ask his long- time crush to the Prom. Warren was still flirting with Jean. Hank and Bobby still had no dates. And Scott? He was doing the one thing he felt he could only ever do right - being the leader of the X-men.  
  
"Okay, team, Scatter Attack A-2."  
  
Three robots loomed up ahead with the five X-men facing off against them. Scatter Attack A-2 was a code meaning a variation of 'Divide and Conquer' and 'Hit and Run.' While Angel flew in between each one delievering short kicks and hits, Cyclops pulsed his optic blasts. Iceman formed ice on their legs, allowing Beast and Marvel Girl to knock them all over, shattering them completely.  
  
"Good job, my X-men. You may wait outside the Danger Room in preparation for the next sequence."  
  
The X-men exited the Danger Room and walked outside the large bay doors. They leaned against the walls. Warren stood next to Jean and they were both right next to the doors and Hank, Scott and Bobby were across the coridoor.  
  
Scott looked at Jean. She couldn't tell because of his visor. He loved her so much. How could she not know that? He wanted to ask her out to Prom so badly, he could taste it. He wished he had a father or a brother to talk to about this. It was so hard. He was a leader. And who did the leader turn to when he was directionless?  
  
There was beep from the intercom, meaning the Danger Room was ready. The doors opened and the five poured in . . .  
  
***  
  
"Hank? Can I talk to you for a few minutes?"  
  
"Sure thing, Scott. Come on over."  
  
Hank was sitting in the library at a long table with a large stack of books.  
  
"I have a problem."  
  
"What's it about, o fearless leader?"  
  
"It's about the Prom."  
  
"Ah. No date? Don't worry. Bobby and I are having the same problem."  
  
"No, Hank, it's not that. It's . . ."  
  
"What is it, Scott?"  
  
"It's Jean, Hank. She's the one I want to go to Prom with."  
  
"Oh. I had no idea. Do you have feelings for her?"  
  
Scott paused. "Yes," he answered.  
  
Hank nodded. "Hmm. Well, we have ourselves a little bit of a pickle, then, don't we?"  
  
Scott smiled and laughed a little. "Yeah. What do you think I should do?"  
  
Hank thought for a few seconds, then looked over at Scott. "You know what I think you should do? Bite the bullet and go for it."  
  
"You mean just go ahead and ask her to Prom?"  
  
"Yep!"  
  
Scott thought about it. "I'll . . . maybe. Maybe."  
  
Hank put his hand on Scott's shoulder. "Scott. Do you love her?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Then do it."  
  
Scott smiled. "You know what? I think I will."  
  
"Thatta boy!"  
  
Scott lifted himself off the chair, feeling a full force and a flush of new confidence flowing through his body. Yes, his heart was pounding. Yes, he was nervous. Yes, he was about to do something that could potentially make or break his future relationship with Jean. But did he care? Nope! Nope, for once, he was ready for this. Heck, he was even smiling.  
  
He walked into the kitchen, where he found Jean and Warren. Warren? What was he doing here? He wasn't part of the plan. Oh well. This would show him.  
  
"Jean, can I talk to you please? In private?" Scott asked.  
  
"Sure."  
  
"I'll see you later, Jeannie," Warren said as he walked out of the kitchen.  
  
Jeannie? Grrrrr. Oh well.  
  
"What did you want to talk to me about, Scott?" asked Jean.  
  
Oh wow, was she beautiful.  
  
"Actually, I wanted to ask you something."  
  
He is soooo handsome.  
  
"Sure thing."  
  
Here goes. "Do you want to go to Prom with me?"  
  
Jean's bright face went to disappointment. Oh no.  
  
"I'm sorry, Scott. But Warren just asked me. An-and I said yes."  
  
"Oh, oh," Scott said. His face turned red in embarassment. "I'm sorry."  
  
"I'm so sorry, Scott. I guess I was . . . I mean, if you had asked me like five minutes ago, I would have said yes, but Warren . . ."  
  
"Yeah, yeah. Well, I just wanted to know, you know, because, you know."  
  
"Yeah."  
  
Akward silence. Again.  
  
"Well, I gotta, um, better, um, take care of my, um, costume," Scott said, trying to salvage his dignity.  
  
"Yeah. You, um, probably should. Good luck with that."  
  
"O-okay."  
  
Scott left. Jean turned around. 'Good luck with that?' What the heck was that? What was wrong with her? Why did she say 'yes' to Warren? Why?  
  
And since Scott asked, didn't that mean he liked her? Or did he know how she felt about him and wanted to take her just for the heck of it to satisfy her feelings? No, that was not it. It couldn't be. That was not the Scott Summers she loved.  
  
Love?  
  
That word had so much depth to it. Did she really love him like that? The only answer she could come up with was 'Yes.' So . . . why was she going to Prom with Warren?  
  
***  
  
The days that followed went fast for the five faithful fighting youths and their mentally willed, phsically challenged mentor. Between regular lessons and Danger Room sessions, the team found time to make reservations, find dresses and get fit for tuxes. All except for poor Scott.  
  
He had basically cut himself off from the team, esspecially Warren and Jean. He had come to inevitable conclusion that while he was a great leader, he was a lousy date. Therefore, steaming from that logical, yet very sad conclusion, he had decided not to attend the Prom with his teammates.  
  
And, with Prom yet only a day away, Hank found himself pondering his poor friend's delliema at the local library.  
  
Poor Scott. I wish he and Jean could have hooked up. They could have made such a cute couple, the mutant youth thought to himself.  
  
Just then, a female voice interuppted his thoughts. He looked to see the young librarian girl named Vera Carter.  
  
"Hello stranger. Haven't seen you here in a while."  
  
Hank smiled. "My apologies, o beautiful keeper of the books."  
  
She smiled, catching Hank's attention. She brushed back a strand of her brown hair and adjusted her glasses.  
  
"So, Hank, are you going to the Prom tomorrow?"  
  
"How did you know we were invited?"  
  
"The whole school was told."  
  
"Ah. Well, as a matter of fact, I am."  
  
"Do you have a date?"  
  
"Nope. Do you?"  
  
She shook her head. "No, but I have a dress."  
  
Hank's smile grew. "Well, now . . . let's put 2 and 2 together, shall we?"  
  
***  
  
"You got a date!?" Bobby exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air.  
  
"Yes, Bobby, I did."  
  
"Well, who?"  
  
"Vera."  
  
"Vera?! Vera Carter?! Argh! Why didn't I think of that?"  
  
Hank sighed. "Well, you could always ask Zelda the waitress. You always said she had a thing for you."  
  
"Yeah . . . but . . . but . . ."  
  
"But what?"  
  
"But she's not somebody new."  
  
Hank looked puzzled. "Somebody new?"  
  
"Well . . . yeah. I wanted to go to Prom with somebody that I had never gone out with before."  
  
"Oh. Uh . . . okay. But you explored that option and, now, well, you're stuck."  
  
Bobby sighed. "Okay. Okay. I guess I'll give her a call."  
  
***  
  
Meanwhile, in a place away from the eyes of humanity, a mutant known as Toad waits patiently for his master, the all-powerful Magneto, to enter the room. He does not wait long.  
  
Magneto entered and his eyes fell immediately on the bubbling, bouncing mutant. "Yes, Toad?"  
  
"Well, master, I was wondering . . ."  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"Well, I was wondering if I could go on a short leave of abscence to attend to some . . . personal matters."  
  
"Personal matters?" asked Magneto, eyeing him carefully.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Is it anything that could expouse us in any way?"  
  
Toad thought for a moment. "No, I don't think so."  
  
"Then you may go. And where, exactly, are you going?"  
  
"Um . . . Salem Center High School."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Their . . . uh . . . um . . . Prom."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Well, it's just, I would like a . . . uh . . . a . . ."  
  
"A what, Toad?"  
  
"A woman, sir."  
  
Magneto laughed out loud. "A woman?!"  
  
"Yes sir. Not for keeps, of course."  
  
Magneto smiled. "Of course."  
  
"Just for a dance."  
  
"A dance?"  
  
"Right."  
  
"With a teenage girl?"  
  
"Hopefully."  
  
"A human?"  
  
"M-Maybe."  
  
Magneto grinned even more. "You may go. But . . . you do know how close to the X-men you will be, right?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Yes. Xavier is allowing them to attend this activity. So be on your toes."  
  
"I always am, sir."  
  
"Then go."  
  
As he jumped off, Toad was smiling wildly. Magneto just shook his head. A woman . . . HA HA HA!  
  
***  
  
"Are you sure you don't want to come?" asked Hank.  
  
"I'm sure, Hank. It's about time I get a good chance to learn to inner workings of Cerebore. And with the rest of you gone, maybe I might get it done," Scott answered, on his knees in front of Cerebore's control access panel and opening a toolbox.  
  
"Well, okay, but we're going to miss you, Scott."  
  
"I don't doubt it."  
  
"Scott, you have a good night."  
  
"You too, Hank."  
  
Just then, Bobby slid into the room. "You ready to get our women, Hanky-boy?"  
  
"Yes sir, Bobby, sir. You seem a bit more . . . comfortable with the whole 'nobody new' concept."  
  
"Let's just say Zelda gave me good reason to be comfortable."  
  
Hank looked at him dumbfoundly, then shook his head. "Let's get going, snowball, we've a Prom to get to!"  
  
"Bye Scott!"  
  
"Bye!"  
  
"Bye guys!"  
  
Scott opened up the panel and stared at the circuitry. He had been alone for about a minute, then heard a voice behind him.  
  
"Scott?"  
  
He turned around. Jean stood in the doorway. She looked beautiful. She wore a slim black dress with a white trim. Her red hair was up and Scott could see a sparkle in her green eyes.  
  
"Jean . . . you look beautiful."  
  
She blushed a little. "Thank - thank you."  
  
Scott blushed a little as well. "I hope you have a nice night."  
  
"Oh, I know I probably will. We're renting a limo and going to a really expensive French restruant. You know Warren."  
  
"Yeah. Man's full of money."  
  
Among other things.  
  
"Well, Scott, I hope you have good night."  
  
"Oh, yeah, well, it's work I've been meaning to do for a while, so, you know . . ."  
  
"Yeah. Well, good night, Scott."  
  
"Good night, Jean. Have a . . . magical time."  
  
She mustered a smile and walked out of the room. Scott looked down for a moment with disappointment, then went to work on Cerebore.  
  
Jean made her way outside, where she spotted Warren. The second he saw her, his heart skipped. "Jean . . . you look goreous."  
  
"Thank you, Warren."  
  
"That dress is so beautful. You look so wonderful."  
  
She smiled and followed him into the back of the limo where they joined Hank and Bobby. Just a quick stop to pick up the girls, off to dinner and then it was to the Prom.  
  
Charles smiled as the limo left, though he was a little disappointed. He had wanted Scott to go so badly. Maybe he needed to have a talk with the boy.  
  
***  
  
"Well, here we are," Warren said as he, Jean, Hank, Vera, Bobby and Zelda exited the limo and headed into the large gymnasium that served as the Prom's headquarters. People danced along the floor.  
  
"Come on, Zelda, let's dance!" Bobby shouted, yanking the poor blond behind him.  
  
"Oh, uh, coming, Bobby!" she responded, a little surprised by his ethusiasum.  
  
"Wow. I haven't seen him like that in a long time," Hank said.  
  
Vera smiled. "You've never seen me like that, Mr. McCoy, but you're about to."  
  
She yanked him to dancefloor, his face full of shock and surprise. Jean and Warren smiled and followed them. A slow song had just started up. Warren set his hands on her waist and she put her arms around his neck and they swayed to the music.  
  
"Jean, I . . ."  
  
"What is it, Warren?"  
  
"Jean, I like you . . . alot. I mean, I see the two of us in my mind and it all seems so . . . automatically correct."  
  
She grinned. "Warren, I . . . I . . ."  
  
"Don't say anything, Jeannie. Let's just have this moment."  
  
Yet, as much as Jean tried, she just couldn't.  
  
***  
  
"Scott?"  
  
Scott looked up from his work to see the Professor enter the room. "Professor? What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing. Unless you want to count a lovesick boy staying home from his Prom to work on a powerful machine out of distraction."  
  
Scott turned to his mentor. "Sir?"  
  
"I know how you feel about her, son."  
  
"You mean . . . my feelings for Jean?"  
  
"Yes, Scott, of course! Now, let me tell you something . . ."  
  
"Okay."  
  
"Your feelings for Jean are strong. And if you really want her, Scott, you have to go after her and not let her slip away. You can not. Trust me. Losing someone you love is hard."  
  
"Sir?"  
  
Charles shook his head. "It's nothing."  
  
"With all due respect, sir, what are saying I should do?"  
  
"Go after her. The chase is all part of the fun."  
  
Scott was puzzled for a moment.  
  
Just for a moment.  
  
Without warning, Cerebore's alarm blared. "WARNING! WARNING! MUTANT PRESCENCE DETECTED!"  
  
Charles wheeled over to the controls and pressed a few keys. "Identify mutant and triangulate location from X-men."  
  
"NAME: THE TOAD. LOCATION: APPROXIMATELY TWENTY MILES FROM SALEM CENTER HIGH SCHOOL."  
  
"Scott, you must join the others there."  
  
"Yes sir. I'll fetch our costumes," Scott responded.  
  
"No, Scott, wait. You can not barge in in costume. You may upset the students."  
  
"What do suggest?"  
  
Charles just grinned.  
  
***  
  
Toad slowly made his way from the trees near the high school. He was wearing an ugly blue tux with frils and a huge bowtie.  
  
"Ahhhh. There are many a females there!" he said to himself, observing a young woman in a white dress without a date.  
  
"Yeah? And what are you going to do about it?" a voice asked right before a beam of crimson energy slammed into the ground beneath the Toad. Toad leapt up onto one of the trees immediately.  
  
"You!"  
  
Cyclops, wearing a tux, stood about ten feet away, with Angel, Marvel Girl, Beast and Iceman, all in their Prom outfits. Angel had his jacket, shirt, undershirt and harness all hung up on a branch, so his wings could be free.  
  
"X-men! Attack position I-9!"  
  
Cyclops smashed the tree with his optic blast. Toad leapt up, but Angel and Beast jumped to his position in the air. Angel kicked him in the back of the head while Beast got him in the gut. Toad went to the ground and Marvel Girl telekentically held him on the grass long enough for Iceman to ice up the leaping mutant's feet and hands.  
  
"Good job, team. Now, are you going to tell us what you're doing here?" Cyclops demanded.  
  
"I'm . . . I'm just here for the girls. For once, I just wanted to dance with a normal girl."  
  
The X-men looked at each other with doubt. Yeah, right.  
  
He is telling the truth, my X-men, Professor X reported telepathically.  
  
"Are you serious?" asked Iceman, snickering.  
  
Yes.  
  
"What do you want we should do with him?" asked Cyclops.  
  
Let him go.  
  
Cyclops melted the ice with his optic blast. "There you go. As for why you're here . . ."  
  
"Hello over there!" a voice shouted. A young woman in a dress walked over. She had a smile on her face and made Toad's odd, yellow, amphibian- like eyes widen with delight.  
  
"Uh, hi."  
  
Hank glanced upwards. Angel was in the air, so not to be seen.  
  
"You kids should get back to the dance, so they don't think you're up to any foul play," the woman said. "You're not, are you?"  
  
"Foul play? Us? Of course not!" Bobby said. Scott shot him a look.  
  
The woman smiled. "Good," said answered, then looked at Toad. "As for you . . ."  
  
"Me?" asked Toad.  
  
"Aren't you a little old to be a high schooler?"  
  
"I, uh, um, ah . . ."  
  
"You must be that last minute chaprone," the woman deduced.  
  
"Uh . . . um . . ."  
  
"Yeah! Yeah, he is!" exclaimed Scott.  
  
"Yes, Mr. . . . Mr. . ." Jean said, trying to think of a name.  
  
"Toadienstien!" Bobby interupted. "Mr. Toadinstien from . . ."  
  
"Magnetosville!" Hank completed.  
  
"Really?! I think I've got some family up there! Come on, you can be my date and tell me all about it . . ." she said, taking his hand. He smiled at the X-men and mouthed 'thank you.'  
  
Warren came back onto the ground. "Whew! It's a good thing she didn't look up! You guys can go ahead. It'll take me a few minutes to get this harnass and so forth back on."  
  
"Okay. Let's go, Bobby," Hank said, as he and Bobby headed away.  
  
"Yeah, well, I should get back to the mansion and . . ."  
  
"Sorry, Mr. Summers, but you're coming with us," Jean replied, grabbed hold of his arm and smiling so wonderfully.  
  
How could he resist?  
  
"I'll be along in a minute! Really!" Warren cried as the four headed back to the school. He then went into a ranting fit when he found he was having much more difficulty with the harnass than he thought he would.  
  
***  
  
They walked in together, both Scott and Jean, only to have their picture unexpectedly taken. The photographer smiled.  
  
"How cute! You guys are the perfect couple! I'll forward this to your school!"  
  
Scott and Jean both blushed, but pressed forward. Then, it happened. A slow dance. In fact, the last dance. They both looked at each other.  
  
"It's the last dance," Jean said.  
  
"I'm a bit surprised."  
  
"So am I."  
  
Scott looked at her, their arms still interlocked. He remembered what both Hank and the Professor had told him. He went for it. "Jean, do you want to dance?"  
  
She smiled wildly. "I would love to."  
  
So, he put his hands on her hips and she put hers around his neck and they both started rocking with each other to the sound of the music. She looked up at him, his rough, yet gentle face. His bushy, wavy brown hair. That wonderful, suppressed, sheltered, sweet young man inside.  
  
He looked down at her, her soft, lovely face. Her red hair and green eyes. The amazing, perfect, bright, loving young woman inside.  
  
"Jean, I . . ."  
  
She put her finger on his lips. "No words. Let's just have this moment."  
  
And they did . . .  
  
***  
  
When Warren walked in, he was a little distraught to see Jean and Scott dancing together during the last dance. Esspecially with the way they were looking at each other. Not that that would last very long.  
  
"Hey! Aren't you Warren Worthington?" a young woman with dark hair asked.  
  
"Why, yes, yes I am."  
  
"I thought I recognized you. My name's Candy. Candy Southern."  
  
"Really? Well, Ms. Southern, would you care to dance?"  
  
So, as the five young X-men danced away, so young, so full of life, little did they know what the future for them. Jean possession by the Dark Phoienex, Scott's scariface to stop Apocalypse, Warren's transformation to Death, Hank's true beast-like appearance, and Bobby's father being nearly beaten to death . . . they all lied ahead. But for now, for this moment, none of it truly mattered. It had yet to come. And right now, just now, they had this moment . . . 


End file.
